Raymond James & Associates Has $71.97 Million Position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK)

Raymond James & Associates trimmed its position in American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) by 10.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 492,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 56,592 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in American Water Works were worth $71,967,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in American Water Works in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its stake in American Water Works by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in American Water Works during the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in American Water Works during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in American Water Works by 260.2% in the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 389 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.58% of the company’s stock.

American Water Works Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of American Water Works stock opened at $141.05 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $27.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.61, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. American Water Works Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $113.34 and a 12-month high of $150.68. The business’s 50 day moving average is $143.23 and its 200-day moving average is $135.24.

American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. American Water Works had a return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 21.93%. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that American Water Works Company, Inc. will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Water Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $0.765 per share. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. American Water Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Water Works

In other news, Director Martha Clark Goss sold 710 shares of American Water Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.85, for a total transaction of $101,423.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,268,308. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $164.00 price objective on shares of American Water Works in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered American Water Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on American Water Works in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research upgraded American Water Works to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of American Water Works in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Water Works presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $140.00.

American Water Works Profile

American Water Works Company, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides water and wastewater services in the United States. It offers water and wastewater services to approximately 1,700 communities in 14 states serving approximately 3.5 million active customers. The company serves residential customers; commercial customers, including food and beverage providers, commercial property developers and proprietors, and energy suppliers; fire service and private fire customers; industrial customers, such as large-scale manufacturers, mining, and production operations; public authorities comprising government buildings and other public sector facilities, such as schools and universities; and other utilities and community water and wastewater systems.